the lineup includes hip-hop artist ne-yo. top powerhouse maroon 5. and fun as breakout rock group play their mega-hit "we are young." ♪ >> this will be a moment. >> absolutely. >> it's great. we grew up watching the grammys and knowing that that was the top of it all. >> what would a nomination -- >> i would burst into tears. >> then we would have to clean it up. >> these are the nominees for best new artist. >> reporter: ten million people watched last year's barack obamay nomination. 40 million watched last year's awards, the second biggest grammy audience in history. ken ehrlich has been the executive producer since 1980. he's the man behind the curtain teaming up with ll cool j to create one of television's most watched events that kicks off with tonight's nomination. >> is this your secret weapon? >> security. security! every jewish boy needs -- >> a big black guy. >> a big black guy. >> even a big black guy needs a big black guy. >> reporter: ll cool j told me that when he won his first grammy his career took off in ways that otherwise possib